


A Dance to Forget

by T_WolfXD



Series: A Dance to Forget [1]
Category: Five Nights at Freddy's
Genre: AU, Also..., M/M, comfort/hurt, not canon whatsoever, read my tumblr for more info, that's the best way to put this, you'll see why - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-23
Updated: 2020-11-23
Packaged: 2021-03-10 00:00:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,334
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27684602
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/T_WolfXD/pseuds/T_WolfXD
Summary: Or a dance to remember?A universe where Fazbear Entertainment is wholesome and happy for everyone! The kids, the nightguards, and even the animatronics! 100% free of danger, and an iconic place where fantasy meets fun.Of course, we only have the animatronics to thank for that, given how human-like and sentient they are, with their own natural personality underneath their sleek and shiny metal exteriors. It’s a wonderful, strange phenomenon, truly- but who would object to never finding out the truth? This is a utopia for all involved- no doubt about it.Well… except that thereis. Danger may not be around, but adifferenttype of problem soon finds its way into Michael’s life. And it all starts with this fateful party.
Relationships: Jeremy Fitzgerald/Phone Guy, Purple Guy/Mike Schmidt
Series: A Dance to Forget [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2032261
Kudos: 17





	A Dance to Forget

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for stopping by!  
> Also posted to my tumblr, find more info about my works there: https://www.tumblr.com/blog/fnaficsfordays

Michael took a sip from his cup, leaning against the painted wall. He looked tiredly out into the scene in front of him, hefting a slight sigh.

The sound of their laughter, their shrieks of excitement, the shining eyes, the wide grins, the clutching hands, the joyful energy… what a sight to behold.

And he hated it.

Michael knew he wasn’t the only one, not by a long shot. Across the room was another person nervously walking around the edge, blue eyes darting around the bright colors, hands shoved into pockets. Their eyes met his briefly, visibly exhaling as their pace quickened.

A slight smile tugged at his mouth as he raised the plastic cup to his face again, taking another drink. They reached him eventually, darting around the dozens of kids milling about. They raked a hand through the spikes of blonde hair on their head, taking in a breath as they started to speak.

“Busy day, isn’t it?” They started, weight shifting between their feet. “Busy night, more like. I thought I’d be the only one here.”

“Nah, I’ve been here for a while.” Michael shrugged. “I’ve just been keeping away from the dining room.”

“Where?” They raised an eyebrow. “The kids are basically everywhere they can get-”

“Kitchen.” He said simply.

They glanced at his cup for a moment, blinking. “Oh.”

Michael snorted. “Don’t try to give me crap over this, dude. Kids are irritating as fuck, and when you multiply them by a hundred-”

“Language.”

“-they don’t get any better. And we’ve gotta put up with this for _three more hours_ Scott, I’m not getting through it without at least one drink.”

“You’ve made sure the bottles are completely locked up and secure though, right?”

“Duh.” He rolled his eyes. “If any of those kids get in the kitchen in the first place, and then through all that stuff we put in to hide it, it’s just on them at that point.”

“Sure, sure.” Scott turned away, eyes glancing around. “Whatever you say.”

Michael followed his gaze, smirk forming as he realized what he was looking for. “Really haven’t seen any of the others yet?”

“No, not yet.” He replied. “Have you?”

“No, I haven’t.” He gave a slow shrug. “But you’re looking for _him_ , aren’t you?”

“...I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Sure you don’t.” He chuckled. “ _Sure you fucking don’t_.”

“Shut it.” Scott muttered, a tinge of pink starting to come to his cheeks. “You _said_ you wouldn’t tell anyone-”

“And I haven’t.” Michael grinned. “But when it’s been a solid two months since then, I feel like I’ve got the right to rag on you a _little_.”

He gave a slight huff. “I’m not going to tell him _now_ , of all times.”

“Better get thinking about it sometime.” He shrugged. “And hey, if I see him here tonight, I’ll let you know.”

“Michael-”

“Just trust me, man.” He pushed himself off of the wall, starting to walk away, cup still in hand. He shook his head slightly as he made his way towards the stage, smirking. Playing matchmaker wasn’t something he did a lot, but in certain scenarios, he was more than willing. Especially when it involved those idiots.

Hopefully these three hours would pass themselves by fairly easily. God, if they had to deal with another pile of vomit like last time… well, he sure wouldn’t be sticking around for it, that was for sure. Unless if it was with one of the others.

“Hey, Michael?” He spun around all of a sudden at the familiar voice behind him. “Sorry if I’m a bit late to the party.”

Jeremy held a lopsided grin, hands clasped together. “I’m actually kind of happy to be at one of these events again, I can’t believe I actually nearly forgot that the manager asked for us to be here tonight. But I guess I wasn’t the only one, huh?”

“Yeah, I think most of us got here, actually.” Michael shrugged. “Everything’s going alright so far though, no needlessly bitchy parents and only the standard bitchy kids.”

He gave a small giggle. “Still not fond of it at all?”

“No.” He snorted. “But I spent the first few minutes getting a drink anyway, so it’s whatever. Though Scott wasn’t the most pleased with it.”

“He’s here too?”

“Yeah, he is.” Michael blinked for a moment, a thought starting to form in his mind. “And, _actually_ , I think he’d enjoy a bit of company at the moment.”

“Would he?”

“Yeah, I think he’d… _appreciate_ it if you went over.” He took a sip, smile starting to widen. “I’m fairly certain he’s still near the entrance, so a little chat would be nice.”

“I guess it would.” Jeremy shrugged. “Might as well get going now, right?”

“Yeah. And...” Michael bit his lip to stop his growing smirk. “Tell him… tell him I sent you.”

“Is there any particular reason?”

“Not really, but just… tell him.” He gave a casual offhand wave.

“Um… well, alright, I guess I will.” Jeremy gave a nervous chuckle. “See you later?”

“You too.” He turned around again, shaking his head as he made his way towards the kitchen again. _Matchmaker indeed._

But then again, he’d only really been enlightened by a certain animatronic in the pizzeria in the past few weeks. He’d _technically_ already gone back on what he’d said to Scott by telling her about his crush- but was it really being dishonest when she already knew herself?

The smell of fresh marinara and cheese suddenly wafted through his senses as the metal door opened. A figure stepped out, yellow exterior sleek and shining as she held a pizza in her feathered wings, proudly strutting towards the table.

_Speak of the devil, huh?_

Almost immediately, a dozen of the kids rushed towards her, excited shrieks and squeals coming from them. Rolling his eyes, he started to get closer, inwardly sighing.

“One at a time, one at a time, kiddens!” Her bright voice had a touch of exasperation, amused as she made her way over to the table. “I can’t hand you pizza like this, now can I?”

As he got closer, Michael could see the chaos that was starting to grow. He cleared his throat when he was close enough, turning the kids away from her for a moment. “Hey. All of you. Back off for a moment, alright? Give her some space to make it over to the table so you can get the pizza.”

Chica gave a small, nervous chuckle. “Thanks, Mike. You heard him kiddens, you need to be patient. There’s a lot of you and only one of me, okay?”

A wave of small murmured apologies rolled off from the small faces, Michael releasing a breath as he watched her place the pizza down on the table. _Thank god for sentient robots with unlimited patience._

“And there you go, kiddens!” Her voice was bright and happy again as she stepped back from the pizza, now cut into slices. “Enjoy!”

“And what do you say in return?” Michael crossed his arms, raising an eyebrow.

“Thank you, Chica!” The chorus of voices rang out, small hands grabbing for the plates.

“You’re welcome, kiddens!” Chica waved a wing at them, her peachy smile fading slightly as they filtered off. She let out a relieved sigh, glancing over at him. “Thanks for the help, Mike.”

“No problem.” He muttered. “I don’t know how you manage to be so good with them.”

She shrugged. “It _is_ written into us all, isn’t it?” She set down the pizza cutter. “But I enjoy seeing them happy.”

“Fair enough.” Michael took a drink. “But there’s a reason I take the night shift instead of the day shift.”

She laughed. “We know that, silly! But you didn’t have to come to this, you know. We would have been alright.”

“No, I think it was worth it.” The smirk started to come back to his face as he remembered his earlier conversation with Jeremy. “It was definitely worth it.”

“For what?” Chica glanced into his cup. “Did you get this from the kitchen?”

“It was just a little, don’t worry. The stash is still secure.”

“Not during a party, silly!” She lightly swatted his hair with a wing. “Not with all the children around.”

“I’m not going to get more, don’t worry about that.” He rolled his eyes. “But that wasn’t what I was talking about.”

“Oh?” Chica tilted her head.

Michael nodded. “Jeremy just showed up, and I got to have a quick talk. And, well, I got an idea since Scott was already here.”

She looked at him, eyes gleaming. “Wait… you didn’t just _tell_ him, did you?”

“No, I didn’t, not like that.” He snorted. “But I _did_ say that he should go ahead and just have a little chat with Scott. And to say that I sent him over.”

“You _didn’t_!” Chica covered her beak with her wings.

“I did.”

She was all but jumping up and down with excitement, metal limbs trembling so much that for a moment, Michael was worried she would short-circuit on the spot. “No way! Do you think he’s actually going to make a move?”

“I sure hope so.” He grinned. “I told Scott that if I found him I’d let him know, and I did. Hell, he might actually tell him tonight.”

“Mmm, maybe not though. Unless if Scott gets somewhere private-”

“Want to bet on it?”

Chica leaned forward again. “What’ll it be?”

“Next time we play monopoly. Loser gives one of their 500’s to the winner.”

“Deal.”

“And the best part is that I don’t think I’ll have to do anything else.” Michael grinned.

“We’ll see!” She chirped, flashing him a grin. “But I don’t know. Either of us could end up with that extra 500!”

“Yeah, but I think I’m going to win.” He tossed his now empty cup into the nearby trash can with a shrug. “Think I’ll just head on out in the back for a while.”

“Now?” Chica questioned. “It’s already fairly dark out, so I’d just be careful. You never know what’s lurking in the trees!”

“I’ll be fine, don’t worry.” Michael was already setting a hand on the kitchen door. “Won’t spend too long, I just need a bit of silence.”

“Alright, you birdbrain.” She glanced at the clock. “And actually, if you’re going to the woods, you might want to tell Vincent about the time if you find him.”

“Vincent?” He blinked, turning his head. “He’s here?”

“Yeah, he’s been out there ever since the party started.” Chica shrugged. “I think he just came in case of an emergency breaking out.”

Michael bit his lip slightly. “Well, I guess I’ll see if I run into him. But I doubt it.” He pushed it open, a smile tugging at his mouth for a moment. “Just keep that bet in mind.”

“You know I will, silly.”

He shook his head slightly, walking through the doorway. The door swung shut behind him, fingers fumbling in his pocket for a set of keys. But as he neared the back door, placed innocuously on the back wall, he found he had no need for them. The knob turned easily in his hand, opening up to a dimly lit space.

A cool breeze whistled through the air, pinpricks of stars glowing in the sky above. Michael could see just the faintest hint of pink and purple fading away, the soft chirps of crickets coming from within the trees and undergrowth, only a few yards away from him. Rolling back his shoulders, he closed the door behind himself, shoving the keys back into his pocket as he walked towards the forest.

The shadows were cool and inviting as he made his way through the branches, the only sounds to be found out here in his own footsteps. Such peace and quiet, after that cacophony of chatter inside. Just what he needed.

What was a night shift without the night, after all?

Then again, this hadn’t exactly been a shift. Just mere supervision incase of an emergency… but nothing ever went wrong here. The animatronics could deal with almost anything- they really _had_ been programmed to be in a place like this. Funny how _robots_ were more lively and social than he himself was.

But that was part of Fazbear’s success, wasn’t it? And why Michael still had a job. A fairly enjoyable one, at that. Sure, coming to these loud parties and cleaning up after them wasn’t his favorite. But at the same time, there was nothing like kicking back after hard work in the office for a round of cards against humanity with the whole crew, a drink in hand.

_Never change, Fazbears. Never change._

He eventually came to a halt in the woods, sliding down against one of the trees, eyes drifting shut. Nothing else out here but himself. Just the breeze, the trees, the sky, the night. Nothing less, nothing more. This was it.

_Well… Chica did say that I wasn’t actually completely alone._

Michael’s eyes blinked open at that thought. She did… but would he really run into him out here? If he hadn’t already, he probably wouldn’t now. It was dark out, after all. Nothing to really see here. Although admittedly, he didn’t think he would ever fail to recognize those silver eyes and smile ever, even amongst the shadows of the night.

But there was no need to worry himself over any of it. He could feel his eyelids drifting back down into peace as his muscles relaxed. Maybe he would be able to have a nice little moment of rest out here, the party wouldn’t be over for a while anyways…

“Knock knock?”

He rolled his eyes even before they were even open, recognizing the voice in an instant. “There isn't even a door.”

Silence. Then, right above his head, a long, slow knock against the trunk of the tree.

Michael snorted, biting back a grin as he opened his eyes. “Really?”

“Really.” Those silver eyes and smile were staring down at him.

“Of course.” He muttered, starting to stand up. “Of fucking course.”

“You know it.” Vincent smirked, walking out from behind the tree. “What brings you out here at a time like this?”

“Feelings of discomfort and claustrophobia when I’m among a hundred screaming toddlers. You?”

“How about feelings of discomfort and claustrophobia when I’m the _cause_ of a hundred screaming toddlers.”

“Fair enough.” Michael brushed the leaves off of his clothes, standing up fully. Despite the darkness, he could still see the pinpricks of his irises, like miniature stars themselves. “Are you planning on going back anytime soon?”

“Nah, don’t feel like it. Are you?”

“God, no.” He shook his head. “I’ve just gotten away, I’m not going back anytime soon.”

“Then what are you here to do?” Vincent chuckled. “Unless you just came to take a nap.”

“Well, I actually kind of _did_ , before you made me get up.”

“Oh, come on. You came out here for something.”

“That ‘something’ was silence, but I guess I’m not getting it now.”

“You must’ve had some on the way here already.”

“...Fine, I guess. But why’d you go and wake me up?”

“Curiosity and boredom.” Vincent grinned. “Silence is better than kids, but still.”

“Well, then what did you have planned?” Michael raised an eyebrow.

“Aw come on, don’t be like that.” He flinched slightly as he felt him reach for his hand, pulling it away from his chest. “The forest gets quite lonely, you know.”

“How long have you been out here for?” He tried to ignore the feeling of his fingers calmly wrapped around his own. “Surely it couldn’t have been any longer than an hour.”

“I came early, so probably not.” Vincent chuckled. “At about seven on the dot.”

Michael blinked. “ _Dude_.”

“I don’t exactly have the best head on my shoulders, if you haven’t already noticed.”

“You’re insane.” He shook his head slowly. “It was quarter till ten when I came out. You got here a full _hour_ before the party started?”

“Yep.”

“And you’ve been out here since, not going inside even once.”

“Sounds about right.”

“You’re a fucking _weirdo_ , man.”

“Heard it a thousand times at this point.” Vincent retorted. He spun him around, facing him again with a smirk. “But there’s no one complaining, and I certainly don’t hear you doing it.”

Michael blinked, realizing the position they were in. Their hands were still clasped together, but now they were fully facing each other, only a foot of distance between them. As they continued to take small steps back and forth in the darkness, it slowly dawned on him.

“Dancing?” He snorted. “You’ve been hanging out alone in the forest for almost three hours, and the first thing you want to do is dance.”

“I told you, I was bored.”

“Again, you’re a weirdo.” He rolled his eyes.

“Right back at you.” Vincent chuckled. “Come on, no one’s going to care, we’re out in the middle of a forest at night. What’s wrong with a few steps?”

“And here I was, thinking you couldn’t prove yourself to be any stranger than I already thought.” Michael let himself get pulled into another spin, grasping his fingers in his own once again. “How is it possible for the animatronics to be more normal?”

“Who knows?” He shrugged. “Whoever made them must have been even madder to abandon them, that’s for sure.”

“You’re not wrong about that.” He muttered. “Robots that have waterproof joints, natural movement, cognitive thinking yet limited information, humane morals- if they weren’t designed to look like animals, they could basically pass as humans. Hell, if they weren’t made of metal and wires too, they might as well be humans!”

“Fazbear’s is a place of fuckery for sure.” Vincent said. “But it’s the best of the weirdos.”

Michael narrowed his eyes. “Except for you.”

“Harsh.” He chuckled. “Come on, I’m not that bad.”

“Believe whatever you will.” He raised an eyebrow. “Not a bad dancer, at least.”

“Such high flattery. Take you a month to think it up?”

“Be glad I even considered it, you bastard.” They fell into a calm silence as they stayed there, stepping back and forth, spinning around in the midst of the forest.

Michael hadn’t been lying when he’d given the small compliment, if it could even be called that. He himself wasn’t a dancer by any means or standards- he’d never exactly been the type to go out of his way for someone else. But being there, holding his hand, getting spun around… he supposed part of him wasn’t complaining.

That was something that he had been right about, apparently. Something about all of this really was what he needed after being in the building. The easy silence, the peaceful darkness, the fluid movements of the two of them within the trees, the odd humor in the whole situation… well, it was just par for the course of Vincent to do. But he quite welcomed it.

“Since when did you know how to dance, huh?”

He maintained his grin. “Let’s just say I spend a lot of time in this forest, yeah?”

“So you just taught yourself.” Michael snorted. “Why am I not surprised?”

“Aw, come on. Admit it.” The playful gleam in his eyes made a touch of heat come to his cheeks. “This isn’t that bad, you’ve stayed for this long already.”

“It’s better than being in the pizzeria, I’ll give you that.”

“By how much?” Vincent tilted his head slightly. “Enough to keep on dancing?”

“...Yeah.” He conceded, smirk fading to something slightly softer. “I guess it is.”

How long were they spending out here, at this point? An hour could have passed by and he really wouldn’t have known the difference. Not when he was right there, keeping a steady hold of him the entire time, as the moon kept rising above the treetops. He didn’t mind it, despite its rather comical start. He didn’t mind it one bit.

But why would he? They weren’t needed at the party at the moment. They didn’t feel needed anywhere else at the moment. With every passing second, he felt his mind slip away more, any remaining thoughts dissipating. Each step pressing slightly closer, each reconnecting of their fingers held a bit tighter, each fleeting glance lingering just a moment longer…

There was no need to break the silence they were in. It didn’t feel like silence at all to Michael, not when all he cared about was right there, silvery irises locked within his own. Even if they were the only part of him that he could see… they still looked beautiful in the shadows.

It was quiet. Calm. Peaceful. Just the two of them there, encased in the sudden, feeling that had risen in their hearts. As unknown as it was, the trance that they were in, keeping them so close to each other… it was a clear thought shared in the silence.

This was _perfect_.

They were no longer dancing, simply standing there, faces mere inches apart. Words had ceased a while ago, and they weren’t starting up again. The air was silent, the night far away to his senses. All he could hear was the beating of his own heart in his chest, soft yet filled with a sweet certainty.

This was right.

_This was… right?_

Michael stiffened. Suddenly, the haze of warmth over his mind disappeared. His hand froze, still intertwined with Vincent, who glanced up.

“Michael?” His voice. The sudden concern in it, calm yet inquisitive, simultaneously making his heart flutter and drop-

“I…” He could feel himself take a step back, hand dropping to his side. He swallowed, not daring to look up and meet his eyes. His heartbeat was ringing through his ears again, but in a way that flooded him with sheer panic.

_What was he doing, what was he thinking, why had he kept on dancing, why hadn’t he kept on dancing, why was he standing still, why couldn’t he answer, why was his heart beating so fast-_

“Michael, I-”

“I- I have to go.”

He could feel something inside him break as he spoke, suddenly turning away from Vincent. All he could hear was his own blood roaring in his ears, blocking out any possible response, his already dim vision all but going dark as he rushed through the trees.

It was a while until he finally managed to glance up at the sudden glimmer of light coming through the branches, ragged breathing only starting to slow down as he made out the silhouette of the pizzeria building. With a sigh of relief, he walked towards the back door, setting a trembling hand on the doorknob.

He slowly pushed open the door, swallowing as his eyes were flooded with the bright, white kitchen lights. It did little to calm his shaken nerves as he stepped onto the tile floor, blinking rapidly as he leaned back against the wall.

 _In and out, in and out…_ He closed his eyes as he tried to slow his breathing back down, trying to push back the rising guilt and shock in his head. God, what had that been, what had they done, what was the rising warmth in his cheeks, what was this feeling making his heart beat so fast-

“Michael! Michael, Michael, _Michael_!”

He nearly died as Chica’s voice rang through the room, falling to the floor in his shock. Michael roughly hit the floor, body freezing up as her words echoed through his mind. He was barely aware of her apologies as she crouched down next to him, words all but numb to his clouded ears.

“-such a fright, I didn’t mean to scare you, I just saw you come through the door and I wanted to tell you. Are you okay? Did the fall hurt you, I’m so sorry-”

“I-It’s okay, it’s fine.” He muttered after a moment, starting to push himself up with trembling arms. “It’s fine, i-it’s fine, everything is fine…”

“Here, let me help.” She scooped up one of his hands in her wing, easily raising him up. “There we go, I’m really sorry, I didn’t think it would be such a surprise.”

“It’s fine.” Michael exhaled, taking in a deep breath. “Everything is absolutely fine…”

“Are you sure?” She tilted her head slightly. “I’m really, _really_ sorry.”

“Y-yeah, it’s… it’s all good, I’m not hurt.” Michael said, taking in a shaky breath. “What did… what were you going to say?”

“Oh yeah!” She gave a small chuckle. “Well… I think I owe you that 500 in our next game of monopoly.”

He blinked. “Wait… so you saw them…”

“I didn’t _directly_ see it, but… well…” Chica gave a nervous giggle. “At one point, I was walking through the hallway, and I saw them holding hands. And- And Bonnie says he saw them going into the closet in that same hallway earlier, while going out from his break.”

“About time.” Michael glanced at the kitchen doors. “Are they still here?”

“Yeah, you came back at about the right time!” She chirped. “The last party guests left about five minutes ago, so now we’re cleaning up.”

“Great.” He gave a slightly forced chuckle. “I’ll ask Scott when I see him.”

“Yeah- oh!” Chica suddenly exclaimed. “I nearly forgot to ask, I’m such a birdbrain. Did you see Vincent out there?”

He froze, hand just set on the railing. “...Yeah. Y-Yeah, I... I did.”

“That’s good, another pair of hands is welcome!” She smiled. “Come on, let’s get to it.”

“Yeah, sure.”

“Are you really okay?” She said cautiously. “It really must have been a fright, I’m still sorry. But are you feeling alright?”

Michael swallowed, still trying to push back the feelings starting to rise back. “I’m fine.” He gave a shaky exhale, forcing a smile to his face. “Let’s just start cleaning up, huh?”


End file.
